Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, more than Any of the four previous novels in the series, is a coming-of-age story. Harry faces the thorny transition into adulthood, When adult heroes are Revealed to be fallible, and matters Seemed That black-and-white Suddenly come out in shades of gray. Gone is the wide-eyed innocent, the whiz kid of Sorcerer's Stone. Here we-have-year teenager who's sullen Sometimes, Often confused (Especially about girls), and always self-questioning. Confronting death again, as well as a startling prophecy, Harry ends His year at Hogwarts exhausted and pensive. Readers, we l'autre hand, will be energized As They enter yet again the long waiting period for the next title in the marvelous, magical series.
